Hours

The scene

The patio at Jax is the place to be before a Rockies game, or on any sunny afternoon in LoDo. Inside, there’s a lively bar atmosphere, with booths set around a sprawling central bar lined with stools.

What to drink

The house special Strawberry Lemonade and Cucumber Lemon Press are popular $5 vodka cocktails on the sweet side. For fun, try a $3 oyster shooter, or ask for AquaMan. That’s a tap dispensing the bartender’s $7 cocktail feature. Next to AquaMan, Mermaid pours out Jax’s spicy and delicious house-made ginger beer.

What to eat

The LoDo Jax happy hour food menu is a long one, and not everything looks like a bargain. The East Coast oyster of the day is $1.75, the Ahi Tuna Poke $14.50, and the Golden Whitefish Roe spread $16. But all servings are share-size, and two menu staples absolutely must be ordered for your group: the calamari ($9), a mix of tires and tubes tenderly fried and served with two sauces, a lime aioli and a mango-chili mojo; and, the salmon pastrami tater tots ($7), cubes of potato crispy on the outside and melting on the inside and topped with smoked salmon and crème fraîche. Next time, we might spring for the $22 Seafood Sampler, which comes with three oysters, ¼ pound shrimp, and ¼ pound snow crab.